Robert Zemeckis' top films: Roger Rabbit and more

Robert Zemeckis is the subject of a current Museum of Modern Art retrospective, running through Oct. 18. These are our five favorite movies (well, four individual films and one trilogy) of his career.

1) 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit?'

A terrific film noir, a work of brilliant subversiveness and, some have argued, a piquant metaphor for social inequality, "Roger Rabbit" mostly stands out for its seamless blending of human and beloved cartoon characters. Oct. 4 and 6

2) 'Back to the Future' trilogy

The first movie is an icon, the second and third less so, but the trilogy ranks as one of the premier feats of populist moviemaking in the past few decades. Screening back-to-back on Oct. 3.

3) 'Cast Away'

Tom Hanks is sensational in this iconic portrait of isolation, which is both intimate and large-scale at once. Oct. 12 and 14

4) 'Forrest Gump'

Some have begun to turn away from the 1994 Best Picture winner, but it's still a grand slice of American mythology. Oct. 9 and 11

5) 'Contact'

Smart science-fiction is difficult to achieve successfully, and Zemeckis did so in this Carl Sagan adaptation. Oct. 10 and 12